Le civiltà più stolte sono collassate distruggendo l’ ambiente in cui vivevano. Questo sostiene Jared Diamond portando il caso dell’ isola di Pasqua. Da quel momento l’ isola di Pasqua è diventata l’ epitome della sorte che ci aspetta.
Ora Diamond è confutato, quella storia va raccontata in altra maniera e l’ insegnamento capovolto:
People have done lots of environmentally destructive things, heaven knows. But there are surprisingly few cases in which societies have permanently laid waste to their own subsistence. The history of Easter Island suggests that humans generally do have a long-term capacity to work with natural systems, even in extreme cases. The exceptions (which certainly exist) tend to be in highly modified environments that require extensive human manipulation to maintain. The Petén, homeland of the classic Maya, is a leading example; Rapa Nui may be another. When wars or epidemics cause a political meltdown, it ruins the intricate network of custom and regulation that maintain these systems. Alas, an ever-increasing portion of the world is highly engineered in the way that Easter Island was.
